MAZINAAJIMNative American Picture-Stories

True Stories -- Many truths. Mazinaajim -- in Anishinaabemowin (Ojibwe language) is a word I compounded. The first part -- mazinaate -- is a meaning-part that derives from the old root "design, is or has a design". The second part, aajim is a simple verb meaning "to tell any kind of story."

<<====Picture Stories Menu ====>>

Story Robe painted and stories told in 1909 by He Dog (Percy Creighton), Blackfoot-Blood. Glenbow Museum special exhibit. After reading explanation, choose imagemap page to click on for closeups of the robe with the story of each part translated, expressed in words.

Raven's elaborate trick Gwich'in elder tells a Raven story -- which is first illustrated as a picture story by Gwichin artist Ron English, then retold in full in text.

Don Monet, cartoon of the day -- author-artist-cartoonist of Colonialism on Trial now works in Toronto and posts a (political) cartoon a day on his studio website; no telling what's there now. These cartoons may be downloaded (in higher resolution black and white zipped form) for free use in non-profit org periodicals. From Don's archives, here's some Native ones:

Colorful modification of a Colonialism trial cartoon -- shows communictions problems between "quantitative" legalistic way of thought and curvilinear nature-oriented Nativ way. This cartoon shows the communications gap as probably more general than white/Indian -- two very different ways of thought -- artistic vs statistic, numbers vs. meanings; money vs. values are all suggested

Delgam Uukw is this color of sky in Gitksan language. Land and skyscape oil painting from Monet's home in B.C. when he was working on the Gitksan Wet'suwet'en land rights trial book, first of his paintings gallery. The name is also a hereditary High Chief title and the name of a Gitksan district. The formal name of the land claims court case is DELGAMUUKW VS. THE QUEEN.

Wet'suwe'ten Images, Greetings -- Enrichment Project 8th graders from a school at Smithers, (British Columbia) -- where the trial began in 1987 before the judge moved it 1300 kms. away -- mentored by artist Ron Mitchell (Hagwilnekhlh) -- continue the Gitksan-Wet'suwet'en land claims story with traditional learning modern style: the Bulkley Valley cyberhistory project in a town school.

Philosophy of History -- Court unable to deal with a native philosophy of history. Canadian law journal article, abstract only. This provides some historical-legal background to the Gitksan-Wetsu'weten land claim law cases.

Black Hawk Dream Visions Ledger Index -- overview and a few images from a project to create CDROM from Native ledger art. Explanations, table of contents, references. The pages of these ledgers are torn out, sold by different dealers. The project aims to try to reconstruct the ledgers entirely.